Quantum criticality in a double quantum-dot system

We discuss the realization of the quantum-critical non-Fermi liquid state, originally discovered within the two-impurity Kondo model, in double quantum-dot systems. Contrary to the common belief, the corresponding fixed point is robust against particle-hole and various other asymmetries, and is only unstable to charge transfer between the two dots. We propose an experimental set-up where such charge transfer processes are suppressed, allowing a controlled approach to the quantum critical state. We also discuss transport and scaling properties in the vicinity of the critical point.Comment: 4 pages, 3 figs; (v2) final version as publishe

Damping of Nodal Fermions Caused by a Dissipative Mode

Using a $d_{x^2 - y^2}$ superconductor in 2+1 dimensions we show that the Nambu Goldstone fluctuations are replaced by dissipative excitations. We find that the nodal quasi-particles damping is caused by the strong dissipative excitations near the nodal points. As a result we find that the scattering rates are linear in frequency and not cubic as predicted in the literature for the ``d'' wave superconductors. Our results explain the recent angle resolved photoemission spectroscopy and optical conductivity in the BSCCO high $T_c$ compounds.Comment: 10 page

Passive Sampler Derived Profiles and Mass Flows of Perfluorinated Alkyl Substances (PFASs) across the Fram Strait in the North Atlantic

Per- and polyfluorinated alkyl substances (PFAS) are a family of pollutants of high concern due to their ubiquity and negative human health impacts. The long-range marine transport of PFAS was observed during year-long deployments of passive tube samplers in the Fram Strait across three depth transects. Time weighted average concentrations ranged from 2.4 to 360 pg L–1, and 10 different PFAS were regularly observed. PFAS profiles and concentrations were generally similar to those previously characterized for polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) at these sites. The detection of several anionic PFAS in “old” water demonstrated that they are not perfect water mass tracers but are also transported to depth via settling particles. Mass flows of PFAS through the Fram Strait in and out of the Arctic Ocean were basically similar (112 ± 82 Mg year–1 northward flow, 100 ± 54 Mg year–1 southward flow). For perfluorooctane sulfonamide (FOSA), export from the Arctic Ocean via the Fram Strait exceeded import by Atlantic Water, likely due to preferential transport and deposition in the Arctic Ocean. These observations suggest that PFAS in the Arctic are governed by the feedback loop previously described for polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in the region─with additional atmospheric transport delivering volatile PFAS to the Arctic, which then get exported via Arctic water masses

Stripes and electronic quasiparticles in the pseudogap state of cuprate superconductors

This article is devoted to a discussion of stripe and electron-nematic order and their connection to electronic properties in the pseudogap regime of copper-oxide superconductors. We review basic properties of these symmetry-breaking ordering phenomena as well as proposals which connect them to quantum-oscillation measurements. Experimental data indicate that these orders are unlikely to be the cause of the pseudogap phenomenon, implying that they occur on top of the pseudogap state which itself is of different origin. Specifically, we discuss the idea that the non-superconducting pseudogap ground state hosts electron-like quasiparticles which coexist with a spin liquid, realizing a variant of a fractionalized Fermi liquid. We speculate on how stripe order in such a pseudogap state might offer a consistent description of ARPES, NMR, quantum-oscillation, and transport data.Comment: 15 pages, 6 figs. Article prepared for a Physica C special issue on "Stripes and Electronic Liquid Crystals

Unregulated Active and Closed Textile Mills Represent a Significant Vector of PFAS Contamination into Coastal Rivers

Despite concerns over the ubiquity of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), little is known about the diversity of their sources to surface waters and their seasonal dynamics. Frequent use of PFAS in textiles means that both active and closed textile mills require evaluation as PFAS sources. We deployed passive samplers at seven sites in an urban river and estuary adjacent to textile mills in Southern Rhode Island (USA) over 12 months. We estimated monthly mass flows (g month–1) of perfluorohexanoic acid (45 ± 56) and perfluorooctanoic acid (30 ± 45) from the upstream river influenced by an active mill. Average mass flows were 73–155% higher downstream, where historical textile waste lagoons contributed long-chain perfluoroalkyl acids. Mass flows of perfluorononanoic acid increased from 7.5 to 21 g month–1 between the upstream and downstream portions of the rivers. Distinct grouping of the two main PFAS sources, active textile mills and historical waste lagoons, was identified using principal component analysis. Neither suspect screening nor extractable organofluorine analysis revealed that measurable PFASs were missing beyond the targeted compounds. This research demonstrates that both closed and active textile mills are important ongoing PFAS sources to freshwater and marine regions and should be further evaluated as a source category

The Air that we Breathe: Neutral and volatile PFAS in Indoor Air

Sources of exposure to per- and polyfluorinated alkyl substances (PFAS) include food, water, and, given that humans spend typically 90% of their time indoors, air and dust. Quantifying PFAS that are prevalent indoors, such as neutral, volatile PFAS, and estimating their exposure risk to humans are thus important. To accurately measure these compounds indoors, polyethylene (PE) sheets were employed and validated as passive detection tools and analyzed by gas chromatography–mass spectrometry. Air concentrations were compared to dust and carpet concentrations reported elsewhere. Partitioning between PE sheets of different thicknesses suggested that interactions of the PEs with the compounds are occurring by absorption. Volatile PFAS, specifically fluorotelomer alcohols (FTOHs), were ubiquitous in indoor environments. For example, in carpeted Californian kindergarten classrooms, 6:2 FTOH dominated with concentrations ranging from 9 to 600 ng m–3, followed by 8:2 FTOH. Concentrations of volatile PFAS from air, carpet, and dust were closely related to each other, indicating that carpets and dust are major sources of FTOHs in air. Nonetheless, air posed the largest exposure risk of FTOHs and biotransformed perfluorinated alkyl acids (PFAA) in young children. This research highlights inhalation of indoor air as an important exposure pathway and the need for further reduction of precursors to PFAA

Transmission in double quantum dots in the Kondo regime: Quantum-critical transitions and interference effects

We study the transmission through a double quantum-dot system in the Kondo regime. An exact expression for the transmission coefficient in terms of fully interacting many-body Green's functions is obtained. By mapping the system into an effective Anderson impurity model, one can determine the transmission using numerical renormalization-group methods. The transmission exhibits signatures of the different Kondo regimes of the effective model, including an unusual Kondo phase with split peaks in the spectral function, as well as a pseudogapped regime exhibiting a quantum critical transition between Kondo and unscreened phases.Comment: 4 pages, 3 figures; Submitted to Physica E (EP2DS-17 proceedings, oral presentation), updated Ref

PFAS and Precursor Bioaccumulation in Freshwater Recreational Fish: Implications for Fish Advisories

Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are a diverse class of fluorinated anthropogenic chemicals that include perfluoroalkyl acids (PFAA), which are widely used in modern commerce. Many products and environmental samples contain abundant precursors that can degrade into terminal PFAA associated with adverse health effects. Fish consumption is an important dietary exposure source for PFAS that bioaccumulate in food webs. However, little is known about bioaccumulation of PFAA precursors. Here, we identify and quantify PFAS in recreational fish species collected from surface waters across New Hampshire, US, using a toolbox of analytical methods. Targeted analysis of paired water and tissue samples suggests that many precursors below detection in water have a higher bioaccumulation potential than their terminal PFAA. Perfluorobutane sulfonamide (FBSA), a short-chain precursor produced by electrochemical fluorination, was detected in all fish samples analyzed for this compound. The total oxidizable precursor assay interpreted using Bayesian inference revealed fish muscle tissue contained additional, short-chain precursors in high concentration samples. Suspect screening analysis indicated these were perfluoroalkyl sulfonamide precursors with three and five perfluorinated carbons. Fish consumption advisories are primarily being developed for perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS), but this work reinforces the need for risk evaluations to consider additional bioaccumulative PFAS, including perfluoroalkyl sulfonamide precursors

Bioconcentration of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances and precursors in fathead minnow tissues environmentally exposed to aqueous film-forming foam–contaminated waters

Exposure to per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) has been associated with toxicity in wildlife and negative health effects in humans. Decades of fire training activity at Joint Base Cape Cod (MA, USA) incorporated the use of aqueous film-forming foam (AFFF), which resulted in long-term PFAS contamination of sediments, groundwater, and hydrologically connected surface waters. To explore the bioconcentration potential of PFAS in complex environmental mixtures, a mobile laboratory was established to evaluate the bioconcentration of PFAS from AFFF-impacted groundwater by flow-through design. Fathead minnows (n = 24) were exposed to PFAS in groundwater over a 21-day period and tissue-specific PFAS burdens in liver, kidney, and gonad were derived at three different time points. The ∑PFAS concentrations in groundwater increased from approximately 10,000 ng/L at day 1 to 36,000 ng/L at day 21. The relative abundance of PFAS in liver, kidney, and gonad shifted temporally from majority perfluoroalkyl sulfonamides (FASAs) to perfluoroalkyl sulfonates (PFSAs). By day 21, mean ∑PFAS concentrations in tissues displayed a predominance in the order of liver \u3e kidney \u3e gonad. Generally, bioconcentration factors (BCFs) for FASAs, perfluoroalkyl carboxylates (PFCAs), and fluorotelomer sulfonates (FTS) increased with degree of fluorinated carbon chain length, but this was not evident for PFSAs. Perfluorooctane sulfonamide (FOSA) displayed the highest mean BCF (8700 L/kg) in day 21 kidney. Suspect screening results revealed the presence of several perfluoroalkyl sulfinate and FASA compounds present in groundwater and in liver for which pseudo-bioconcentration factors are also reported. The bioconcentration observed for precursor compounds and PFSA derivatives detected suggests alternative pathways for terminal PFAS exposure in aquatic wildlife and humans. Environ Toxicol Chem 2024;00:1–12. © 2024 The Author(s). Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry published by Wiley Periodicals LLC on behalf of SETAC